Heavy Call Volume At Centers

Posted May 15, 2006 by Vidisha Priyanka

Updated May 15, 2006 at 04:44 PM

Humana Inc., one of a dozen of healthcare providers enrolling seniors in the government’s new prescription plan, said it’s experiencing heavy call volume today, the last day to sign up for Medicare Part D. The cutoff is midnight.

Two of the company’s 5 U.S. call centers are located in Tampa. The Tampa centers were fully staffed today, with most agents expecting to work a 13-14 hour day to enroll seniors in Humana’s Part D programs.

The company could not provide an immediate figure on its call volume today, but said during the past week the Tampa operations averaged about 35,000 calls a day.

At the company’s call center in Netpark at Hillsborough Avenue and 56th Street, agents and other workers wore Hawaiian shirts and rooms were brightened with Hawaiian theme decorations to help lighten the day.

Suzanne Perron, an agent for Humana Direct Marketing Services said, “People are thankful to get in to a human being and get it done.” Agents are trained to determine what plan might best fit each caller’s needs, she said. Nationwide, Saturday and Sunday were Humana’s busiest days ever.

The company received 20,000 calls on Saturday and 15,000 calls on Sunday.

Humana usually averages about 5,000 calls on a normal weekend day.

Experts offer these tips if you plan to enroll in a Part D plan today:

If you are enrolling for a plan by phone, be sure to have the following ready:

* Medicare card

* List of prescriptions (ask the representative about whether the drugs covered in the plan you want to enroll).

* How much you spend per year on prescriptions.

* Your residence address, as well as mailing address if they are different

It takes approximately 45 minutes to an hour to enroll over the phone. The wait time to speak to an agent could be as long as 30 minutes today. No calls will be accepted after midnight, however, agents will be available until 3 a.m. to finish up enrollments or if you’re holding on the line.

If you do not get enrolled today, you can still enroll, but there will be a 1% penalty for every month you sign up after the initial enrollment period.

You can enroll online by going to www.medicare.gov

- Will Rodgers

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Operators Ready

Posted May 15, 2006 by Vidisha Priyanka

Updated May 15, 2006 at 04:43 PM

Operators are ready and waiting to take calls from people signing up for Medicare Part D program at Humana Direct Marketing Services in Tampa.

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The Information Board

Posted May 15, 2006 by Vidisha Priyanka

Updated May 15, 2006 at 04:42 PM

The electronic board displays the volume of calls, where they are coming from, the amount of time that one has to wait while calling to enroll at Humana Direct Marketing Services in Tampa.

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Inbound Calls

Posted May 15, 2006 by Vidisha Priyanka

Updated May 15, 2006 at 04:41 PM

Health and life insurance agents at the Humana Direct Marketing Services center typically call consumers to get them to sign up with Humana. But since the open enrollment began Nov. 15 for Medicare Part D, more than 90 percent of the calls handle at the office in Netpark on Hillsborough Avenue and 56th Street are incoming, said Khursheed Zafar, Humana’s national director of operations “We have been so busy, we have not been able to make outbound calls,” he said. - Will Rodgers

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Seminole Location is Packed

Posted May 15, 2006 by Christina Mancing

Updated May 15, 2006 at 04:22 PM

Officials at the Seminole Kmart at 7850 113th St. in Pinellas say there’s standing room only for Medicare drug program enrollment. All seven counselors are busy.

-Carol Gentry

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